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Negative Zone (Marvel comics)
The Negative Zone is a fictional setting, an antimatter universe depicted in publications from Marvel Comics, most frequently in Fantastic Four and Captain Marvel. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, it first appeared in Fantastic Four #51 (June 1966). Fictional description The Negative Zone in the Marvel Comics Universe is used as a fictional dimension. Essentially, it is a universe parallel to Earth's. The two have many similarities, but a few noteworthy differences include: all matter in the Negative Zone is negatively charged; the Negative Zone is entirely filled with a pressurized, breathable atmosphere; and near the center of the Negative Zone is a deadly vortex of unspeakable power. Since the Negative Zone is largely uninhabited, several would-be conquerors have attempted to bridge the gap to Earth and take over its population. A few notable residents of the Negative Zone include Blastaar, Annihilus, Stygorr and Noktiis. The Negative Zone is often visited by the Fantastic Four as Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic) discovered it, and has mapped portions of it extensively. The Age of Apocalypse version of Blink also visited it once, which proved that there's only one Negative Zone, as Annihilus remembered the Fantastic Four even though they never existed in the Age of Apocalypse. For a number of years, Captain Mar-Vell and Rick Jones were bonded to each other, causing one of them to exist in the Negative Zone while the other would exist in the regular universe. They exchanged places by clasping the special bracelets each wore or automatically after a few hours. Spider-Man has also visited the Negative Zone, and acquired a costume that allowed him to merge with shadows and become practically invisible. When he was framed by Norman Osborn a few weeks later, he used the costume to become the dark, mysterious Dusk (one of his four new superhero identities during the Identity Crisis story arc). A few months later, after Spider-Man's name was cleared, Cassie St. Commons was given the guise of Dusk and joined the Slingers. Cletus Kasady also visited the Negative Zone, finding an exact replica of the Carnage symbiote there, the original one which he had lost when Venom absorbed it into his own symbiote. History The earliest origins of the Negative Zone and its culture have not been revealed, but rough estimates place its height of science and art over 1.5 million years ago, nearly coinciding with the rise of the Skrull and Kree races. It is believed that around that time the Negative Zone began "the Big Crunch," ceasing expansive progress and contracting to a central nexus. Some of the most powerful and influential races faced destruction and sought to preserve their lives. One of the more aggressive races at this time were the Tyannans. The lion-like bipeds explored much of the Negative Zone, and eventually began to seed many of the planets, including Baluur, with their "spores of life." Their final mission, however, went awry. A debris field had begun forming around Tyanna, which was at the very heart of the Negative Zone. The Big Crunch had begun pulling the universe back towards its center and planets crumbled under the increased pressure. One of the last remaining Tyannan ships careened off a large chunk of rock and crashed on the desolate planet of Arthros. The ship's engines dead and food processors destroyed, the Tyannan captain ordered the release of their life spores. Life slowly began to evolve on the planet, much as it did on Earth. Farther from the core of the Negative Zone, other cultures thrived. One culture had gone so far as to cover half of their planet with a giant city, and then developed an artificial brain for it. The city, Ootah, even began to develop a sense of self-preservation and drove the inhabitants out of its boundaries, building up greater defenses to prevent them from returning. Farther still from the core, the world of Kestor also flourished. It was the first recorded world beyond Tyanna that faced obliteration at the hands of the Big Crunch, roughly 10,000 years ago. Unlike Tyanna, whose gravitational force became greater than could sustain life, Kestor's sun was pulled toward the nexus. This caused the planet's several moons to shift their respective orbits and wreak havoc on the planet itself. As 20,000 beings left Kestor in a great space ark, the sun exploded with the fury of a supernova, substantially damaging their ship. All but 500 of the crew died and the navigational systems were destroyed, eliminating all hope of finding a new planet to call home. One of the planets the Tyannans spored, Baluur, developed in a more barbarous manner. The inhabitants grew very large and powerful, and even the meek among them were stronger than an ordinary human. While they did progress technologically, their advances were at least partially driven by war. But they apparently began to experience the effects of the Big Crunch and several millennia ago they took their cities underneath the planet's surface. A sole entrance exists and is known only to the Baluurians themselves. They established a quiet monarchy and became very reclusive, only venturing into space on rare occasions. Sentient life eventually developed on Arthros. A lone insect-like creature emerged from the primordial marsh 1000 years ago, and began to reason. A frail creature, he used his superior intellect to avoid larger predators and soon stumbled upon the Tyannan's derelict ship. Inside the craft, he donned a helmet in an attempt to warm himself. The helmet in fact had recordings of all the Tyannan technology and culture, and the creature was able to deftly assimilate all of it. He took the power from discarded life canisters and created a Cosmic Control Rod, capable of granting the wielder great power. Taking the name Annihilus, he set out to not only right those who wronged him, but to ensure that no one should ever harm him again. While Annihilus forcibly took control of his immediate sector of space, a king rose to prominence on Baluur. Blastaar was a ruthless and powerful leader who sought to expand Baluurian domain. The other Baluurians feared him and were eventually able to depose him by sedating him heavily and sending him to what they hoped would be his destruction in the center of the Negative Zone. Discovery While searching for a way to travel through sub-space, Reed Richards stumbled upon a gateway to the Negative Zone.Fantastic Four Volume 1, Annual #6 He spent a fair amount of time studying it through probes, and determined that it was largely unpopulated. So much so, in fact, that he - and others - used the Negative Zone on several occasions to get rid of difficult enemies, such as the Mad Thinker's android, the Super-Adaptoid, and even Galactus. Reed and the Fantastic Four have since done more detailed explorations of the Zone and no longer use it to dispose of villains. For some time, the Norse realm of Asgard was lost in the Negative Zone.New Mutants Vol 1 #86 (Feb. 1990) ''Civil War'' In the Super-Hero Civil War, a group of heroes led by Iron Man, Mister Fantastic and Yellowjacket have created a massive prison in the Negative Zone (similar to the Vault) to house captured non-registering heroes as they wait for their trials. It is designated Negative Zone Prison Alpha but nicknamed Fantasy Island by inmates. Tony Stark himself named it "Project 42", as it had been the 42nd idea out of a hundred that he, Reed Richards and Hank Pym had created following the Stamford Disaster. There are portals to it planned for every single state so prisoners can be transported there by the different teams in the Fifty State Initiative- including one at Ryker's Island. It is very clean, with sanitation, but extremely heavily guarded, including password-changes every ten minutes. Its most notable former inmates were Iron Fist (posing as Daredevil at the time), Cloak and Dagger, Speedball, Prodigy, and Prowler. It is also the setting for the final battle of the super hero civil war, as Iron Man lays a trap for Captain America but the Captain retaliates by using his planted mole, Hulkling, to release all the prisoners of 42 who come to his aid. Though in the ensuing battle Cloak manages to teleport all its superhuman detainees out, it remains as a prison for villains such as Lady Deathstrike and Taskmaster. (Taskmaster was later released to become the trainer for new Initiative recruits and Deathstrike seemingly escapes to assist in the Purifiers crusade during the Messiah Complex.) It also holds many of the Sakaaran forces from World War Hulk. The Negative Zone is an alternate, parallel universe depicted in publications from Marvel Comics. Reed Richards discovered it, and has mapped portions of it extensively. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, it first appeared in Fantastic Four #51 (June 1966). Appearance The Negative Zone is a universe parallel to Earth's. The two have many similarities, but a few differences include: *All matter in the Negative Zone is negatively charged; *The Negative Zone is entirely filled with a pressurized, breathable atmosphere. *Near the center of the Negative Zone is a deadly vortex of unspeakable power. Since the Negative Zone is largely uninhabited, several would-be conquerors have attempted to bridge the gap to Earth and take over its population. A few notable residents of the Negative Zone include Blastaar, Annihilus, Stygorr and Noktiis. Notes * Peter Parker as Spider-Man has also visited the Negative Zone to save two children, and acquired a costume that allowed him to merge with shadows and become practically invisible due to the absorbing of the Negative Zone's dark energy. *Cletus Kasady also visited the Negative Zone, finding an exact replica of the Carnage symbiote there, since the original one was lost when Venom absorbed it into his own symbiote. In the one-shot Civil War: The Return, the Prison's warden was revealed as the first Captain Marvel, apparently back from the dead (although he was later revealed as a Skrull sleeper agent named Khn'nr, whose conditioning was so strong he kept believing he was the Captain even after he had realized he really was not). ''Secret Invasion'' In the Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four limited series, the Skrull warrior Lyja (posing as Susan Richards) sends the Baxter Building into the Negative Zone. She reveals herself to Johnny Storm (her former spouse) and attacks him, feeling angry that he had forgotten her. During the course of their battle, Johnny saves Lyja from being hit by a police car, pulled in through the portal. The two reconcile after that, but a Negative Zone creature attacks them. They manage to defeat the creature, but Lyja passes out from her injuries. A bit later, when the "new" Fantastic Four fly off to the prison, Franklin and Valeria are grabbed by Negative Zone creatures, but Lyja saves them. Later when Ben, Johnny, Franklin, Val and the Tinkerer are ready to leave the Negative Zone she refuses to leave, because she wants to find out who she is.Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four #1-3 War of Kings After the events of Secret Invasion, the inmates of the prison took control of the facility after their correction officers abandoned the prison. Blastaar later overrun the prison during the prelude to the War of Kings story arc.Guardians of the Galaxy #10 Cataclysm The Negative Zone is used to dispose of Earth-616's Galactus when he is accidentally transferred to the Ultimate Marvel universe due to the temporal distortions caused by the events of Age of Ultron. The heroes of the Ultimate Marvel universe reasoned that Galactus will starve to death in the Negative Zone due to the fact that it is universe made of antimatter and Galactus won't have anything to eat there. Unique features The Crossroads of Infinity Initially, it was generally believed that getting caught in the gravitational pull of the vortex at the center of the Zone meant certain death. However, some theorized that if one could survive entry into the vortex, one could travel to another dimension. This was only a theory, however, until Doctor Doom gambled the lives of the Fantastic Four to prove it. Once inside the so-called Crossroads, individuals flip through a series of other parallel dimensions while progressing through. Coming to a halt seems to stabilize the Crossroads and then allows movement in the universe arrived in. It still remains a risky trip, however, for a number of reasons. First and foremost is the expenditure of energy necessary to keep from imploding. On one occasion, it required the use of both Annihilus' Cosmic Control Rod and the Invisible Woman's force field to stave off death. Second, and almost equally important, is the lack of control one has while passing through different dimensions. Even with the precise calculations of Dr. Doom, it required several hops to reach the dimension he sought. Staying on a straight course to the very heart of the Crossroads leads one to Tyanna. Although it was believed to have been destroyed centuries earlier, the Tyannans' technology proved capable of sustaining them within the center of the vortex. Using their advanced machines, they were able to modify their bodies to exist safely in the immense pressures, but at the cost of being forced to remain hidden within the Crossroads. The Tyannans remain there, content to pursue their scientific interests. The Distortion Area Normally beings enter the Negative Zone through the Distortion Area. This is an invisible sphere of energy that resides in the Negative Zone but is accessible from many parts of Earth. By hitting the field with a precise wavelength of energy, a rift opens between both dimensions connected by the Distortion Area. This area acts as a buffer between the two polar opposite universes and alters a traveler's own polarity so that they may exist in the other dimension without harm. When activated, the Distortion Area appears from the outside as a crackling energy source roughly six feet in circumference. This effect only lasts as long as the field is activated and, once closed, becomes invisible again. Nearby matter is sucked into the near-vacuum of the Distortion Area and "falls" for about 50 seconds before emerging on the other side. The Distortion Area itself is nothing short of indescribable. Humans cannot begin to accurately fathom or record what transpires within the Distortion Area and travelers' minds try to compensate with a bizarre display of light and color. Combined with the natural turbulence in the area, many find the trip rather nauseating. Like any other mode of transport, choosing where to enter the Distortion Area in part affects where an individual is deposited on the other side. Reed Richards' former lab in the Baxter Building, for example, deposited someone at the outskirts of the Debris Field near Arthros. A rift opened on Yancy Street, however, dropped a traveler on the planet Tarsuu. Other methods may be employed to reach the Negative Zone but, while they tend to be more spatially accurate, they are very difficult to come by. Generally, this mode of transport is reserved by extremely powerful entities like Thor, the Supreme Intelligence, Galactus and the Watchers. Captain Mar-Vell's Nega-Bands could also transport the wearer to the Negative Zone but the precise destination was dependent upon the location of the Nega-Band's counterparts worn by Rick Jones. Emotions One of the rather undocumented side-effects the Negative Zone has on people seems to involve bringing forth what are usually considered negative emotions. At this point, it is difficult to determine the cause of this unusual phenomenon, but a number of dealings with the Negative Zone have given the impression that something inherent within it can lead to emotional distress. The severity of this distress can vary greatly. On a few occasions, it has manifested itself as a city-wide panic. Other times, it merely caused a single person to temporarily lose their hope. Still other times, it caused several individuals to experience emotionally charged flashbacks, pulled from their subconscious. And, although it could be attributed to his psyche, Annihilus' main motivation is an obsessive fear of death. Not all inhabitants of the Negative Zone experience anything beyond normal anxieties, but the number of known instances of unusual psychological distress seems rather high. Visitors to the Zone may or may not experience anything emotionally disturbing. While there is no concrete evidence to show the correlation the Negative Zone has with emotional discord, it remains a significant feature of the region. Life As mentioned previously, the Negative Zone was originally thought to be largely uninhabited. Though this is now known to be incorrect, life having arisen on a number of its planets, the Zone is still mostly unoccupied space. Most of the encounters heroes have had with the Negative Zone revolve around Annihilus and/or Blastaar. Curiously, for as little life as there exists in the Negative Zone, it is very capable of supporting life. There, outer space itself is permeated with an oxygen-rich atmosphere, closely approximating Earth's. Consequently, humans can exist peacefully in space without the need for cumbersome pressure suits or oxygen masks. It is perhaps an issue of gravitational pull that is one of the biggest hindrances to life in the Negative Zone. While all objects of reasonably sized mass (planets, moons, asteroids, etc.) obviously have their own gravitational pull, it is weak enough to be overcome with minimal effort. Most heroes with flight capabilities can escape a planet's gravitational field with ease, as can any machine with the capacity for flight. Because of this lowered gravity, it is believed that vegetation has difficulty seeding properly, giving life a tenuous foothold at best on any given planet. Moisture also seems to be an issue in the dearth of life in the Negative Zone. While each planet has hardly been explored in full, many of the ones studied - including those that are inhabited - have shown few, if any, natural water sources. Most planets appear to be very arid, with cultures adapting to the lack of moisture much as was done on Earth's deserts. Time Being a different dimension with different laws of physics, time flows differently in the Negative Zone than it does on Earth. Although a comprehensive analysis has never been completed, preliminary findings suggest that two weeks pass in the Negative Zone for every hour on Earth, making a 336:1 ratio. On a smaller scale, every minute on Earth is a little over five and half hours in the Negative Zone. It seems, however, that this ratio changes as one approaches the center of the Negative Zone. Since there have been several instances of pan-dimensional conversations between the two planes, it appears the time ratio is much closer to 1:1 when one is at the nexus of the Negative Zone. It is currently unclear at what rate the time difference increases as one moves away from the vortex or if there is an upper limit to how great the difference between the two universes can become. Planets There are different planets in the Negative Zone which consist of: * Argor - A planet that is home to the Argorans. * Arthros - A planet that is home to Annihilus and the Arthosians (a race of insectoids). * Baluur - A planet that is home to Blastaar. * Kestor - A planet that was destroyed causing the Kestorians to become nomads. * Tarsuu - * Tyanna - A planet that is home to the Tyannans (a race of lion-like aliens). Tyanna is located at the Crossroads of Infinity. The Tyannan scientists genetically engineered a spore that could be scattered over an uninhabited planet's surface where they can grow into new plants and animals. This would make the planet habitable (referred to as terraforming). Other versions Blink miniseries In the Blink mini-series, it is established that there is in fact only one Negative Zone in the multiverse of Marvel Universe, with exit points to different realities and timelines.Blink #2 This goes along with the Mutant X Universe, where Havok tried to get back from the Mutant X-verse to the main Marvel earth by a detour through the Negative Zone.Mutant X #25 Additionally both Onslaught and Rikki Barnes traveled from the Pocket Universe of Heroes Reborn to the mainstream Marvel Universe through the Negative Zone. Ultimate Marvel (The N-Zone) The Ultimate Marvel equivalent of the Negative Zone is called the N-Zone. As revealed in Ultimate Power there are many other zones, labeled with letters (e.g. the Z-Zone and the Q-Zone), implying that the N is merely a categorization, not a shortening of the word "negative". The N-Zone has an atmosphere that is lethally acidic to humans and the Ultimate Fantastic Four, with the exception of the Thing, required space suits to live. Introduced by Brian Michael Bendis, and further explored by Warren Ellis in the pages of Ultimate Fantastic Four, it is the universe directly below the Ultimate Marvel universe. It is tied to the powers granted to the Fantastic Four and is the homeplace of the Ultimate Fantastic Four villain Nihil. The N-Zone is a universe in the later stages of entropic heat death, with less than a million years of existence left to it. There are few stars still burning, mostly long-lived red dwarf stars, and despite the advanced technology of many races, life barely maintains a toehold on its existence. Space is also apparently foreshortened in this universe, with the Fantastic Four's shuttle Awesome achieving speeds that would be impossible in our own universe. Later, during the Cataclysm event it is again established that there is in fact only one Negative Zone in the multiverse of Marvel Universe, with exit points to different realities and timelines, as the Ultimate Marvel heroes, after a brief trip to Earth-616 to acquire local information on Galactus,Cataclysm: The Ultimates' Last Stand #3. Marvel Comics. 2014 eventually manage to send Galactus to the Negative Zone, reasoning that he will eventually starve to death due to the fact that Negative Zone is made of anti-matter.Cataclysm: The Ultimates' Last Stand #5. Marvel Comics. 2014 Following an incident on Earth 616 where the Eternal known as Ikaris is brainwashed by a Kree device called the God's Whisper, he swears vengeance on his would-be captors. With help from Aarkus, the Eternals find the comatose Galactus floating in the Negative Zone, and state that they plan to use the God's Whisper to unleash him upon the Kree when he awakens.All-New Invaders #5 In other media Television * The Negative Zone appears in "Behold the Negative Zone", an episode from the 1994 Fantastic Four series. * In a scripted, but unproduced episode of The Silver Surfer titled "Down To Earth" Part 3, Reed Richards uses the Negative Zone as a means to contain Terrax. * The Negative Zone appears in Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes. Depicted as merely an alternate dimension inhabited by an array of various serpent and insect-like creatures. According to Doctor Doom, the Zone is a nexus for various other universes and claims he discovered it years before Reed. * The Negative Zone appears in two-part Iron Man: Armored Adventures episode "The Makluan Invasion". It is depicted as a dark empty void to which the Mandarin banished the Helicarrier before rescuing it at the end of the episode following the Makluan Invasion. * In The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes episode "Some Assembly Required", Iron Man mentioned that he's been working with Reed Richards on building a prison in the Negative Zone to contain the escaped supervillains after they broke out. The Negative Zone appears in the episode "The Man Who Stole Tomorrow" when Thor, Ant-Man, and Wasp place Blizzard in Negative Zone Prison Alpha. In the episode "Avengers Assemble", Mister Fantastic and Iron Man create a portal to the Negative Zone which they send Galactus into where he ends up feeding on the Negative Zone's infinite anti-matter. * The Negative Zone appears in the two-part Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. episode "Doorway to Destruction". Video games * In Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, the Negative Zone plays an important part. It contains "Prison 42", the prison for unregistered heroes and the nanite-controlled supervillains. It is the place where the Fold has first become active. Nick Fury had to self-destruct Prison 42 to keep the Fold from invading Earth. A news cutscene in either of the two endings mentioned confirmation of Prison 42's destruction. * The Negative Zone appears in the Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet video game. * A Negative Zone alternate costume could be unlocked for those who pre-ordered Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions at Best Buy. This costume can be used in the Noir universe. See also * Phantom Zone * Qward References External links * Negative Zone at Marvel.com * Negative Zone at Marvel Wiki ---- Origin No one in our universe knows how or when the Negative Zone appeared or how old it is. If its aging process is similar to our universe's, it is much older: it has already begun to contract and will eventually implode (a Big Crunch as opposed to a Big Bang). At one time there were several species who had flourishing cultures and made progress in science and the arts. When the contraction began (one estimate puts it at a million years ago), their focus changed to survival. The people of Tyanna, for instance, used spores to terraform other worlds and produced many of the species now known to live there. Other species include the people of Argor, Arthros, Kestor, Krysok, Mantracora, Ootah, and Tarsuu. The Negative Zone is an alien universe with several characteristics that distinguish it from our own. First, and most important, it is composed entirely of anti-matter. Anyone or anything that moves from one universe to the other must reverse its polarity on a molecular level or be instantly annihilated. Second, it is a mature universe that has already started to contract (ours is still expanding); eventually, it will implode. Third, time passes at a faster rate relative to ours. Fourth, a still unknown factor (possibly lack of water) makes evolution difficult, because much of the Negative Zone is still uninhabited. The best-known characters from the Zone include Annihilus and Blastaar. Discovery: The FF and the Zone Reed Richards discovered the Negative Zone and built the first portal between the universes. The Fantastic Four have visited there many times.Reed Richards has mapped parts of the Negative Zone. Whenever an area in the Zone is designated as part of a sector, it refers to his mapping system. As with the inhabitants, though, the struggle for survival takes precedence over pure research. In the early years, Reed knew little about the people and properties of the Negative Zone. In fact, he treated it as a sort of cosmic trash can, useful only as a place to send intractable foes such as the Super-Adaptoid and Galactus. He abandoned this stratagem after such foes inevitably escaped. Most of the FF's interaction with the Negative Zone has involved attempts by Annihilus, Blastaar, or both to invade our universe. On an extended trip there, however, they encountered several of the other denizens. They discovered Ootah, a world half-covered by a city, where the control systems had driven out the citizens. Another world, Kestor, imploded when it was drawn into the center of the Zone. Recently, Reed has returned to the idea of using the Zone as a prison, this time with an actual facility built for the purpose. During the Secret Invasion, Lyja opened a portal and transferred the entire Baxter Building to the Negative Zone. A builder described it as a tumor in space, an adrift dying universe that connected to several others Other Heroes in the Zone For a time, Captain Marvel and Rick Jones shared the same body, with one in our universe and the other in the Negative Zone. The one in our universe changed places voluntarily by striking the Nega-Bands together, or Jones returned involuntarily after a few hours. Captain Marvel freed Jones from this intermittent imprisonment by physically transferring him back to our universe. Spider-Man has also visited the Negative Zone. He became involved in a rebellion against Blastaar on the world of Tarsuu and acquired the costume now used by Dusk ; Webspinners, #s13, 14. The realm of Asgard once drifted into the Zone. Odin drove Annihilus back when he tried to invade. | PointsOfInterest ' ---- = Annihilation Area / Crossroads of Infinity As already noted, the Negative Zone is contracting. A black hole (at least, the Zone's version of a black hole) has formed at the center of the universe, made up of all the surplus matter. As it grows, its pull becomes stronger, thus adding more mass to itself--a vicious circle. Some call it the Annihilation Area. In theory, entering a black hole in our universe and traveling through the singularity will send you to another universe. In the case of the Negative Zone black hole, this theory is fact. For ordinary beings, though, this trip would be fatal. The first hazard is the sheer amount of mass already on its way into the black hole, in the form of gas, rock, and debris. The second is the exponential increase in gravity as one approaches the singularity, which would exert tidal forces on the traveler (see Larry Niven's short story "Neutron Star" for a good explanation). Finally, everything that approaches the singularity is pulled toward and through a single point at faster-than-light speeds, a process that would turn normal matter into a microscopic stream of plasma. The whole process would be like going through an avalanche, an earthquake, and a flood simultaneously, all of them at literally astronomical levels. On the only known successful passage into the singularity, it took the combined forces of Doctor Doom, Annihilus, and Susan Richards to survive. Inside the singularity, though, is the Crossroads of Infinity, a path that branches off to many other universes. Where you step off the path determines the universe you enter. And, if you stay on the path to the end, you reach the new location of Tyanna. ---- Distortion Area A direct link between our universe and the Negative Zone would mean the end of both. Reed Richards found (or created) an energy field that serves as an insulator so that travel between the universes is possible. The Distortion Area is an energy sphere in the Zone that is normally invisible (presumably to keep people like Blastaar from noticing it). A beam of the correct wavelength will energize the sphere, making it briefly visible, and open a portal. Passing through the sphere not only takes you to the other universe, it reverses your atomic particles to match the charge of your destination. The experience is disconcerting, to say the least; nausea is the most common complaint, while others may suffer psychological effects such as anxiety or depression. In rare cases someone may enter a fugue state, a sort of waking dream. These mental problems only seem to happen when traveling into, not out of, the Negative Zone, so some property of the Zone itself may be responsible. Reed recently invented another means of traveling to the Negative Zone--the Fold Space Transceptor--so the Distortion Area may be obsolete. ---- Time Differential In the space-time continuum of the Negative Zone, time passes at the same rate as it does here: one second per second. When compared to each other, though, the rates differ. While one day passes in our universe, eleven months go by in the Negative Zone. Conversely, while one day passes in the Zone, only 25.7 seconds go by in our universe. This phenomenon offers amazing opportunities for research in such fields as astronomy and cosmology. So far, the difficulties of getting to the Zone and staying alive there have discouraged such research. * Tarsuu Alternate Realities Earth-9047 (Humorverse) In Earth-9047, the Negative Zone is called Negatory Zone. It is a labyrinth that the Fantastical Four went through, trying to avoid dangerous inhabitants including Annihilator and Blastarr.Negatory Zone Maze Page in ''What The--?!'' #7 *| Residents = Former Residents Nim (Earth-616) General Nim was killed by Blastaar for failing to destroy the rebels. *| Notes = * The Negative Zone is not to be confused with the energy field the Inhuman Maximus created around the city of Atillan by reversing his atmo-gun. This seemingly impenetrable energy field was eventually destroyed when Black Bolt unleashed the power of his voice, shattering the field and laying to waste much of the city. *In Ultimate Marvel, the N-Zone is another universe with a corrosive atmosphere and an insectoid villain named Nihil.* The Negative Zone appears in Fantastic Four: World's Greatest Heroes (Earth-135263). Seen inhabited by various serpent and insect like creatures. The zone is alleged to be a nexus to all other universes. Unlike it's Earth-616 counterpart the zone was not discovered by Reed Richards, Doom alleges he discovered it years before. Also the Zone does not appear to be composed of anti-matter as Johnny Storm and his girlfriend were seen entering the zone with no protection or preparations and surely would have been annihilated. *| Trivia = *| Links = * Antimatter Universe for DC Comic's version of the Negative Zone. }}